Failure as an End and as a Beginning

5The Practical Classroom

As a certified ELA teacher in Wisconsin, I love words—how they’re used, how they make others feel, what they mean. One of my favorite quotes is from Mark Twain (BrainyQuote, n.d.): “The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—’tis the difference between the lightning-bug and the lightning.” The words we use matter, especially in the classroom and especially when the learning gets hard.

When I was student teaching, I shared with my professor that one of my sophomore ELA classes was really tough—the students didn’t listen, didn’t finish the work, didn’t respect me, and so on. Lots of didn’ts. After listening to me complain, she said the true mettle of a teacher comes from working with students that didn’t. What was I going to do to get them to did? Moving to did takes a change in language, language that is useful to students, language that is explicit in what you want your students to know and be able to do. The right language makes your classroom practical; it moves students from unclear in their learning goals to clarity about what they want to achieve.

In this chapter, we look at three ways you can examine, reflect on, and refine the language you use with students to align it with a practical not-yet culture and approach. First, I explain the concept of a practical classroom and its place within the not-yet approach. Second, I provide guidance specifically geared to avoiding deficit-minded language while engaging in disciplinary instruction. Third, I focus on the not-yet language of a practical classroom focused on engaging students in productive struggle and meeting learning goals.

The Not-Yet Approach in the Practical Classroom

A practical classroom grounded in the not-yet approach focuses on specific language that is useful to students—language that is explicit and focused. Useful language tells students what they need to know and what to do. Think of the robust verbs emphasized in chapter 4 (page 51) for writing learning intentions and success criteria. Another example of useful language is the feedback teachers give students. You want your feedback to be pointed and specific, such as by using explicit examples to guide students’ learning efforts. Such practical language is authentic and relevant, and it offers students hope and empowerment while reminding them to move beyond the setbacks and obstacles they face.

How often do you consider the language you use in the classroom? According to coauthors and experts in education practice Amy J. Heineke and Jay McTighe (2018), teachers often “don’t stop to critically consider [their] use of language in the classroom and how it deters or promotes student learning and achievement.” I like to think of this in terms of right words and almost right words. Right words get students to did. Almost right words may not always provoke students to didn’t, but they could because they are often deficit-driven and can carry various messaging, particularly when teachers are discouraged, overstretched, or impatient. Even when used with good intentions, these words may cause students to shut down or otherwise disengage and feel disenfranchised.

Sometimes teachers choose words they think will build up a student’s esteem or foster a growth mindset, only to realize later that the words they thought were inspiring actually came across as condescending or belittling. Right words use robust verbs as part of explicit feedback and positive, growth-minded language that focuses on the process instead of the product. The right words, as in scaffolded success criteria, give students a clear road map to success. These words are the opposite of deficit-driven and ineffective language; they build up students’ confidence, and they encourage students to use productive struggle to be successful learners.

There are also never right words. Sometimes teachers may use inefficient or unreasonable language toward a student personally, citing a student’s lack of engagement, motivation, respect, or responsibility toward anything the teacher deems as missing from the student’s character. Or teachers use some of these deficit words toward the student academically, citing a student’s lack of mathematics (or any other subject) skills, critical-thinking skills, collaborative skills, or research skills. Remember, avoid using any language with students that might deem them as having qualities absent